herzog wrote:How did the Canons and Sonys of the world miss this boat so badly that a little guy steps up and creates a billion dollar business from nothing?

Simple. Different markets. Canon aren't really into the cheap video market so to say but Sony is now playing catchup and is utilising its software/techinical side to gain lost time. They tend to focus on mass consumer cameras (point and shoot cameras that a todler to grandma can use) and on high end photographic equipment. Only recently has that transitioned into consumer video production using their photographic products aswell. None is better than the other. Flatout quality wise GoPro holds nothing compared to them. Price wise gopros are in another world being a couple hundred bucks all up and not a few thousand for the lens + a few more thousand for the body. You can mount GoPros on nearly anything but cameras are very limited. GoPros are lighter than a bag of chips while cameras and lenses can weight more than some airlines allow for checked baggage. The GoPro might not be able to read a number plate 600m away but with my camera I sure can. The market for small action video cameras was very small and GoPro captured that market. Just as Fuji, Canon and Sony captured the high end professional video market. The first GoPro which was a film camera that only took photos wasn't a huge success at first but as it evolved over time it became a more powerful, more usable and way more marketable. They really only started to gain in popularity with the first of the HD Hero series (GoPro HD960). I think the GoPro Hero 3 is the 7th generation of camera that they have made.

By cheap video I meant small fixed video cameras that are available to the mass consumer market. Canon might do things like that but as i said before its still a whole different market. Small water proof cameras are still in the point and shoot market. Panasonic, Pentax, Canon, Nikon, Sony are all in those markets with different variations of waterproof cameras. Also take a look at how the video camera market has been heavily hit by digital cameras with HD video mode. Using Top Gear for POV shots using GoPros wasn't the best example. In certain situations they use GoPros because of the mounting options. But they also heavily use small broadcast hdtv cameras rather than GoPros because of their limited ability in certain areas/situations ie mostly lighting - in terms of highlights, noise control, time of day/night, cloudy/overcast/raining etc. Mythbusters is closer but then again that's what their market was aimed at. Another reason why GoPros have just exlpoded for the consumer markets are better internet resources (youtube/vimeo/data limits/connections), market expansion and other uses, memory sizes and prices for hard drives and memory cards. Earlier in the week I picked up a 3tb HDD for $130. Back in 2009/2010 $130 was lucky to get you a 1tb hdd or a 500gb external hdd. So it has to do with a whole differnt arrangment of things.

Built in battery, so you are not able to swap the battery over when out and about. Doesn't really tell you how long it lasts, just "more than 1 hour".Uses AVI so file size will be quite large. Needs a class 10 memory card for 720P.

Having just become the proud owner of the Contour+2, mounting the little sucker is my number one priority.

Luckily I happened to stumble across a great option using an Exposure light mount which has worked out awesomely. As with the light you just pull up on the red knob which releases the camera. (photos below)

Mounting block from the light bolts directly onto the back of the Contour

Highly Tuned Athletes are taking preorders for their first batch of Hero3 Blacks for 2013 for early Jan at the moment as per their newsletter email yesterday. I bought mine from there on preorder in their December batch. I don't know if any Aus retail has stock at this stage.

I now have a GoPro Hd Hero 3 Silver, as well as a GoPro Hd Hero 1. The battery life in the 3 is woeful in comparison. However the battery bacpac and batteries (for the bacpac) from the GoPro 1 and GoPro 2 work on the GoPro3. I now have the GoPro3, with the extra battery from the GoPro 1, on my helmet. The GoPro 1 is mounted on my seat post looking backwards.

Disable the wireless, as it sucks battery life and upgrade the firmware as it fixes a lot of glitches in the camera.

Ideas for mounting a gopro facing backwards?I'm thinking RAM Mount currently but if someone has a better idea, btw seatpost view is blocked by a Carradice Camper Longflap. Could possibly make a platform on my tubus rack to put it there as well.

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